John Hughes threw his wildcard signing straight in for the first leg against the Romanians.

Fon Williams had been with Tranmere, who were relegated from League Two in England in the summer.

Now he is in Europe and the possibility of a mouthwatering Battle of Britain tie against the Hammers in the next round

That is the incentive for Caley Thistle after yesterday’s draw in which the Highlanders were paired with the Londoners or Malta’s Birkirkara.

And the keeper is delighted to be back in the spotlight in what is a crucial campaign for every Welsh squad member.

Chris Coleman’s Dragons are flying high and within touching distance of a place at France 2016 . Fon Williams is battling it out with Wayne Hennessey of Crystal Palace and on-loan Aberdeen keeper Danny Ward for the No.1 jersey. Asked if the move can help him make the breakthrough at international level, he said: “One hundred per cent. That’s why I’m here. I’m here to improve myself, the team, everyone around me.

“This football club is on the up. It’s a fantastic place to be working day in, day out.

“Obviously the bonus is if I’m selected for Wales. I thrive on that. Wales are doing so well at the minute. Fingers crossed, a few more wins and we’ll be in France come next summer.

“It’s good to see Danny Ward up here as well and it will be fantastic to be playing against him. There are a few boys up here who I know already.

“Ash Taylor is another and I saw him around Christmas time. He couldn’t speak highly enough of the league.

“I’ve played most of my football in the English leagues. I didn’t know too much about this one but coming here and listening to people it’s obvious this is a really good standard.”

Fon Williams was given a baptism of fire as Hughes started him against Astra instead of Scottish Cup-winning player-coach Ryan Esson.

And he could have done better with the free-kick from Constantin Budescu which proved to be the only goal of the game. Hughes was unhappy with the way Caley conceded, having picked out the Romanian playmaker as a real set-piece danger.

Fon Williams said of the goal: “It was a great free-kick. He hit it quite low over the wall and I saw it quite late because they had two at the other side of the wall.

“I couldn’t see the ball coming over and by that time it was too late for me to react to the ball. But he hit it well, he hit it low and it’s a good finish.

“I got a hand to it but that’s how it goes. That’s the life of a goalkeeper unfortunately.

“We knew he was a decent set-piece taker. He took everything – corners, free-kicks, the lot.”

Fon Williams had no complaints about being thrown in at the deep end and said: “That’s what I wanted.

“I’ve had about two or three days’ training after being off for quite a bit of time.

“It was good to get 90 minutes under my belt. I needed it. I came here to play football. Whether there was a game straight away or not, so be it. I’m ready for it.

“I need as many games as possible. I’m here to work hard, I’m here to improve the team.

“I’m here to improve myself. It’s just great to be a part of this football club.

“It’s a lovely part of the world and Caley Thistle are a fantastic team. They play proper football, total football. We were in talks for a few weeks before the actual deal happened.

“By the time we got everything sorted I was needed up here on Monday. We had quite a long journey up but what a fantastic journey it was.”